by Lauren Louko

Happy Spring! After a cold, dark winter, the earth renews itself––many animals awaken from their long winter’s nap, plants everywhere begin to grow and bloom anew. The time for a fresh start and new beginnings. 

Many of us set New Year’s resolutions in January, yet often those goals have been forgotten and neglected by March. Interestingly enough, the new year was once celebrated around the time of the spring equinox––so, what better time than spring to reevaluate our New Year’s resolutions and get back on track? 

This time of year, people often have the urge to ‘spring clean’ with the intention to deep clean, and reorganize their closets, drawers, and homes. Having a clean environment feels good. But why not clean our internal environment as well? 

I believe that spring is the perfect time for reflection upon and tidying up of personal goals and intentions. Sort of a ‘spring cleaning’ for your mind. 

This spring, I invite you to take a little time to sit down and really reflect on your goals. Find the thoughts and goals that no longer serve you and remove them. Then focus on achieving goals that you are truly passionate about. 

As we have learned in the last year, life can change quickly over the course of a couple weeks or months. Re-evaluating your goals and thought processes provides an opportunity to become aware of old objectives that no longer align with current circumstances. Additionally, this reflection can give you the time and space needed to focus on new and improved goals and intentions.

I have found that the two most beneficial ways to reflect and re-evaluate, are journaling and/or talking to someone about your goals and dreams. As you journal or engage in conversation with a friend or mentor, keep the following in mind: 

• Remember that as your life changes, so do your goals and dreams: This means that the current moment might not be the right time to pursue goals that you set last year, or even last month. Your life circumstance is constantly changing and evolving, and so too are your goals. Instead of having a mindset focused on quitting and negativity, recognize that over time a goal might no longer be beneficial or serve you later on. It is a beautiful thing that we are able to change and adapt our goals as we go through life. 
• Focus on you and your goals––not the expectations or praises of others: Make sure that your goals honor who you are. Your personal goals should be set with the intention that they will serve you well. Setting goals without this in mind has the potential to lead to extra stress for fear of letting someone else down. The truth is your personal goals should be something that you achieve because you want to.
• Recognize that you are more than your goals and intentions: Keep in mind that goals do not define who you are. It is okay to let go of a dream or goal because it no longer aligns with what you want, this doesn’t change who you are. Nor does achieving a goal define who you are. Goals are simply a guiding framework to provide you some structure while trying to change your life circumstance. As you pursue your goals, remember they are only a part of the journey.  

It’s so important to know that
reevaluating or changing goals doesn’t mean that you’ve failed.

It’s so important to know that reevaluating or changing goals doesn’t mean that you’ve failed. As previously mentioned, your life is always changing and evolving, and with it so are your goals. In fact, re-evaluating and changing goals is proof that you are making progress in your own life. Recognizing when a goal needs to be adapted or setting an entirely new goal is a huge step in personal growth and change.

A large part of re-evaluation is determining what is working and what is not working for you in addition to identifying new opportunities for growth. As you set your intentions, keep a list on paper of the things that satisfy or nourish you (the things that make you feel good) and the things that don’t serve you well. This list will help you to let go of the things that no longer work for you and to capitalize on what does. 

An example of how to do this could be the following: You made a New Year’s resolution to lose weight. This is an annual resolution and over the years you’ve tried every diet under the sun, yet never seem to get the permanent results you were hoping for. When you reflect on the previous actions that you’ve taken, you may find that a restrictive diet where you cut out groups of food entirely or only eat at certain times of the day doesn’t serve you well. When you stop the restrictions, the weight comes back, and the dieting cycle starts over again. You know there must be a better way. 

In this season of renewal, I hope you’ll take the opportunity to sit down with your thoughts and reevaluate your goals, to see how they align with your desired life circumstances.

You may also notice that when you eat real, whole foods, you feel better. You can learn that it is okay to allow yourself to eat a treat once in a while without causing irreparable damage to your ‘diet’. You will begin to feel like your best self. The opportunity for growth in this situation is to continue exploring foods that make you feel good, then adding them to your ‘diet’. This is what we at Nuuaria like to call the ‘self-made’ diet. This type of diet requires you to slow down, listen to and honor your body.

A diet that you create yourself for yourself, is one where no one can tell you what to eat except for you! You are the only one that can know what feels right for you and your body. When you eat without restriction or deprivation you will find yourself free from the vicious cycle of dieting. A self-made diet is a large part of sustainable weight loss. 

In this season of renewal, I hope you’ll take the opportunity to sit down with your thoughts and reevaluate your goals, to see how they align with your desired life circumstances. Be intentional in the process, as it is an important step in your journey. With a new perspective on your goals, there is nothing holding you back from achieving them. Any time you feel ‘stuck’, take a moment to pause and reflect on your goal, refreshing your game plan if needed.

If you find yourself struggling with spring cleaning your thoughts and weight-loss goals, the certified mentors at Nuuaria are a great resource, when you’re ready to take the next step in your weight-loss journey. Nuuaria mentors and health coaches will be with you every step of the way, encouraging you and offering support. To begin your Nuuaria journey, send us a message, give us a call, or take the quiz at the bottom of this page.